A town centre café owner has been questioning its future this week after it recently experienced its worst trading weeks in more than a decade.
Bear Grills on Market Street, Congleton, has been trading as a café since 2013, but owner Mark Winder took to social media to ask residents: “Has Bear Grills had its day?”
Mr Winder said: “The last few weeks have been our worst trading in 14 years.
“Yes, it’s the summer holidays. Yes, the weather has been fantastic and that has actually worked against us.
“But summer holidays and good weather have happened every year for the last 14 years and we have never known it this quiet.”
The family-owned café described itself as “somewhere between the old greasy spoon it once was and a modern coffee shop that offers great breakfasts and a cool café vibe”. The building itself has served as a café in the town centre since 1976.
Mr Winder told the “Chronicle” the social media post was about reaching a “genuine crossroads” after 14 years.
He said: “It’s the inconsistency, alongside the continuing increase in our costs, that has made us question whether the current model remains sustainable.”
The social media post reached around 76,000 people and although Mr Winder did not intend for it to be a request for business consultancy or a cry for help, he said he had “strangely” received a few enquiries.
He said: “I’ve worked as a retail business consultant myself, so I’m very aware of the commercial issues we’re dealing with at Bear Grills, the challenges and the solutions.
“When I first took it on as a failed business in 2013, we used to open seven days a week, and reduced this to five days after a few months when it became clear what would be sustainable.”
After the pandemic, Mr Winder said it was clear Bear Grills was no longer going to survive as “that little convenient café” for shoppers and workers in Congleton.
He added: “Attitudes change, meal deals, quick bites and the lack of a defined lunch break for many mean we no longer were viable as a cafe in those terms.
“Add in the shop closures in Congleton and we have lost some big draws – Farmfoods, Aldi, and the final nail, the closure of B&M Bargains. Shopping became a lesser draw for people, too.
“Lots of older customers never returned after covid.”
More issues emerged as the cost of living increased, the VAT pressures for hospitality and the “ever-increasing” cost of parking in the town centre.
He said it became clear very soon that for town centre cafes aiming at the affordability end of the consumer spectrum these issues were a “perfect storm for business services to struggle as costs increase and consumer footfall drops”.
Mr Winder said he was unsure what the future held for Bear Grills but has asked residents to share their thoughts and see if there is still enough support for the café to carry on trading.
He said: “We occupy a very prominent location in Congleton and yet, still, we have people telling us they don’t know where we are, we aren’t active on social media and we should open more days.
“If we didn’t reduce our opening hours during the week and start opening Sundays, we would 100% not be open.
“We actually take more business on a Sunday than we did on a combined Wednesday, Thursday and part of Tuesday, so that has been a huge business success for Bear Grills.”
Mr Winder asked residents to give Bear Grills one last chance: “If Bear Grills still matters to you, come and see us.
“Bring your family. Bring your friends. Have breakfast. Grab a coffee. Come back if you haven’t been for a while.”
The cafe will be closed this weekend for a planned break but Mr Winder said: “After that, who knows?”
He asked for people to share their idea for what Bear Grills could be next by emailing beargrillscafe13@gmail.com.
